Leisure, lifestyle and joie de vivre in Noordhoek

Although only 20-30 minutes from most parts of the city, there’s a mountain to drive over, or around, to get to Noordhoek. Somehow, despite the journey’s wide-horizon views of the ocean and the fynbos floral kingdom, many Capetonians find this inconvenient.

Think again.

Rejuvenate the spirit with a swim at the 5km-long beach, one of the Cape’s most beautiful — white sands, slightly wild, the sea changing colour throughout the day.

Breezes from the beach cool the tiny family-owned vineyard, Klein Sering. Find the winery down a country lane, passing grazing horses and strutting peacocks. Boutique wines are interesting but can fluctuate in quality — not so here, their sauvignon blanc and Sémillon having achieved numerous awards since 2020, and consistently rated 4-stars by Platter’s Wine Guide. Unsurprisingly so, as — the secret’s out — the winemakers are Anzette and Riandri Visser of Cape Point Vineyards fame.

Joie de vivre abounds at Furny’s, situated within a copse of giant milkwoods. Ostensibly a wine bar, its sundown Friday wine tastings have become a local social institution and a drawcard for oenophiles beyond Noordhoek.

But the friendly, family-run venue offers other epicurean delights. Owner Wayne Furness’ daughter, Silwood-trained chef Leigh, works culinary magic in a kitchen she’s reluctant to show me. “It’s ridiculously tiny,” she grins. 

That being the case, her creations prove that necessity is the mother of invention. The regular menu has Mediterranean influences, with vegetable ingredients and flavour bombs that hearken Yotam Ottolenghi.

The slow-cooked lamb is tempting, but we decide to share the three specials. Asian cauliflower nuggets in Hoisin dressing with aioli, lime and sesame are so sticky-tangy moreish my wife almost refuses to share them. The clever combination of unusual vegetables in the artichoke and fennels tarts with Parmesan, toasted pine nuts and rocket elevates the dish more than a notch above comfort food.

The larger, sharing platter of prawn, chorizo and Parmesan orzo with peas, chilli and gremolata is wonderful. The sweet and tender crustacean, slightly spicy sausage and soft, grain-like pasta combine superbly. From the Helderberg region, the Cavalli Reserve chenin blanc — aromas of citrus, peaches and ginger — is an excellent pairing recommendation from our waiter, Meneas.

Fine dining in countryside setting

Swing into the Farm Village precinct to find The Foodbarn. Despite the quaint rural name, serious skill and innovation goes into each dish on the extensive menu, styled for lunch as “bistronomy” and as tapas for dinner. It’s fair to have high expectations, because chef-patron Franck Dangereux was the culinary visionary behind La Colombe, pioneering the country’s fine dining scene when he came to SA “really, in the beginning, just to surf,” he says.

Confessing to having experienced burnout, he left La Colombe soon after it was rated the world’s 28th best restaurant, to, in some respects, go back to his cooking roots: homely surroundings, French bistro fare, transforming simple ingredients with classic sauces and expert preparation.

On entering, there’s an aroma of celery and herbs — stocks simmering in the kitchen, perhaps. The décor is informal, but dramatic. The stacked bookshelves, internationally renowned Noordhoek-based artist Michael Reichel’s iconic small sculptures suspended from the ceiling, and his abstracts adorning the mauve walls, combine to create the ambience of a culture club.

The bistronomy menu has almost 30 dishes. Tempted by everything, I try too many.

Wine is a related passion of Dangereux’s, and every dish has an individual wine pairing, so my lunch transforms into a sumptuous, sensory overload. Salmon carpaccio, steak tartare, then steak Béarnaise, and, before ending with chocolate marquise millefeuille, the two standout dishes: cauliflower beignets and bouillabaisse.

The pillowy beignets are accompanied by black bean mousseline, kimchi, chipotle salsa and turmeric oil — a riot of colour and flavour. Bouillabaisse, Dangereux says, can’t be perfectly replicated from its Marseilles origins because the fish-stew’s stock — fumet de roche — is made from tiny rockfish endemic to that coastline.

Regardless, his Cape Town version is exquisite, redolent with saffron, the richness of the rouille and yellowtail offset by a well-bodied chardonnay, Migliarina, from the Elgin region.

It’s clear that Dangereux is doing at The Foodbarn exactly what he did at La Colombe, but with rekindled passion and an admirable commitment to mentor a new, young cohort of cooks and servers from the local community.      

Creative hub

Across the road from The Foodbarn is the Eatwell Studio, the eponymous residence, workplace and gallery of local artist Lynne-Marie Eatwell. Her studio is jam-packed with sculptures, impressionist works and landscapes, but, having studied classical drawing at the Florence Academy of Art, she specialises in portraits and stills.

She travels the world for inspiration and subjects, and her compilation catalogues from these journeys are stunning: the Pushkar Camel Fair in India’s Thar desert, the wild horses of the Camargue in southern France, sheepshearing in the Karoo, the Khoisan in Namibia.

I find her art, poetry and journaling monograph of the Golden Eagle hunters of Mongolia, titled Wings of Aspiration, to be particularly beautiful — simultaneously exhilarating and peaceful, both contemplative and dynamic.

Just like Noordhoek.                 

Eatwell Studio, corner Noordhoek Main Road & Avondrust Circle, phone 021-789-2767. 

The Foodbarn, Noordhoek Farm Village, corner Village Lane & Noordhoek Main Road, phone 021-789-1390.

Furny’s, 67 Beach Road, phone 072-455-0184.

Klein Sering, Nassau Road, off Avondrust Circle, by appointment, phone 060-687-0875